Galveston

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The Bishop’s Palace was designed by the architect Nicholas J. Clayton. We’ve seen his name listed as the architect on several of the large houses in the historic area. Originally the house was built for Colonel Gresham and in 1923 was bought by the Catholic Dioceses for the Bishop who lived there for the next 33 years. That is how the house became known as The Bishop’s. It is still owned by the church and serves as the current bishop’s residence when visiting the area. It is so ornate that palace is certainly a good term to describe it.

Mon. Feb. 12lf: Today the weather was overcast and windy. The waves were pounding the shore and we saw one lone surfer. We explored the state park and the historic area of Galveston. The parking meters in the historic downtown area print out the time you have paid for and what time you are in violation. The paper goes on the dash board, so there’s no cruising looking for a meter with some time left. Unfortunately we were not prepared with change and the cost was $1/hour. We had enough for about 20 minutes, which gave us time to go into an old fashioned ice cream parlor and enjoy a mid-day treat.

The dogs love the beach walks. Lizzie likes walking closer to the water and is working on her technique for getting closer to the gulls and sandpipers. Neeko likes the area up by the beach grass. Both are more playful on the beach walks and enjoy the freedom of the retractable leashes.

Tues. Feb. 13th: Today the sky was clear and blue, but again windy. We had lunch at Gaido’s on Seawall Blvd. We shared a meal, but each had our own dessert. The food was excellent and thanks to our waiter we didn’t order our yellow fin tuna over-cooked. We talked with another couple, the Johnsons, at the restaurant. It turned out that Al Johnson was a former Red Wing hockey player. They recommended The Galveston and Texas History Center located on the 3rd floor of The Rosenberg Library. They said that it had a good presentation on the hurricane of 1900. We decided it was worth the trip, so headed over there and were impressed by the display. We like these little gems that are less well known. We also visited The Mardi Gras Museum on Twenty-third and Strand and enjoyed looking at the various memorabilia.

Fun information about Mardi Gras: The Mardi Gras season in New Orleans, begins every year on the same date, January 6th. That is also known as Twelfth Night and there is a masked ball and other events. The length of the Mardi Gras season varies each year, even though it begins on the same date. Mardi Gras or Fat Tuesday is 47 days before Easter and Easter is the first Sunday following the first full moon after the beginning of spring. I always associated Mardi Gras with New Orleans but I read in the book “Off the Beaten Path, Texas” that Galveston’s Mardi Gras is the third-largest in the nation. New Orleans is the largest and Lafayette, Louisiana is second largest.

Wed. Feb. 14th: Took pictures today of things that we’ve driven past several times and will always remind us of Galveston. I read a quote in The Smithsonian Guide to Historic America that was about the John Clement Trube House in Galveston, as having once being described as “the strangest house in a city of strange houses.“ We didn’t see that house, but we did see many other houses and there were many unique houses and buildings. We’ve driven around the block to drive by and get a better look at something that caught our eye. This is an area rich in individuality. Tomorrow we head for our next destination.

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Photos

State Park
Unusual structure for shade over the picnic table.

State Park and RV
Unusual structure for shade over the picnic table.

Comments

[Judy Holmberg]

I'm impressed
Hi Lynne and George, Thanks so much for taking the time to relay all your wonderful adventures through travelblog. Someone (Lynne?) is a great writer. Your detail is most enjoyable. I hope you continue to share....photos are neat as well. I doubt Gerry and I will ever take a trip such as yours so it's nice to travel vicariously. Continued happy trails...J. Holmberg

[Emily]

Thanks!
We are enjoying your travels. Hope all is well. We travel to Ohio on Sun. to help with the new house. Today is the day they become home owners for the first time.